Sri Lanka’s president Gotabaya Rajapaksa stated that a United Nations resolution mandating a hybrid accountability mechanism “cannot be entertained” in a meeting with journalists this week.
Speaking on the resolution, Rajapaksa reportedly said that “it is not possible for the Government to act against its own country”.
According to the President’s Media Division, he was also quoted as saying it “is not possible to allow any harm to the soldiers or the independence of the country”.
In the wide-ranging meeting, Rajapaksa also spoke out against devolving power to Tamil provinces, stating “without that the consent of the majority, it is not possible to implement any form of power-sharing political solution”. “Giving separate police powers to nine provinces is not realistic," he claimed. "It will do more damage than good.”
See more from the PMD here.
His comments come just days after the Sri Lankan government confirmed it was “currently reviewing” action to be taken at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), including starting “top-level engagements” at withdrawing from a resolution on accountability for violations of international law. The resolution mandated an accountability mechanism with foreign judges and lawyers to prosecute those accused of committing human rights violations.
